Lodi woman, 23, facing murder, DUI charges

Thursday

Aug 22, 2013 at 12:01 AM

FRENCH CAMP - A woman was booked into the San Joaquin County Jail on suspicion of murder and driving under the influence Tuesday, four days after she was involved in a vehicle collision that killed three people near Thornton and Walnut Grove, authorities said.

Jason Anderson

FRENCH CAMP - A woman was booked into the San Joaquin County Jail on suspicion of murder and driving under the influence Tuesday, four days after she was involved in a vehicle collision that killed three people near Thornton and Walnut Grove, authorities said.

Coleen Torres, 23, of Lodi had been hospitalized since Friday, when her Jeep Cherokee careened into oncoming traffic on Interstate 5 and collided with a Volkswagen Beetle, said Officer James Smith, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol. Her injuries were described as major but not life-threatening, Smith said.

Torres was released from the hospital Tuesday and taken to the jail, where she is being held without bail, authorities said. She is scheduled to make her first appearance in San Joaquin County Superior Court at 1:30 p.m. today, authorities said.

According to the Highway Patrol, Torres was traveling north on Interstate 5 and driving under the influence shortly after midnight Thursday when she struck the back of a big rig. Torres then veered into the southbound lanes and collided head-on with the Volkswagen, sending it down an embankment, officers said.

All three occupants of the Volkswagen died in the crash. Those killed were Vincent Cruz, 56, of Woodland; Nadara Guerrero-Cruz, 42, of Woodland; and Monica Martinez, 53, of Sacramento, authorities said.

Torres' vehicle came to rest on the highway and was then struck by a big rig that was traveling south on the interstate, the Highway Patrol said. The driver of the big rig suffered minor injuries, officers said. Torres was extricated from her vehicle and taken to a hospital with serious injuries, authorities said.